From its creation in 1734, Orange County was governed by the County Court, appointed by the Governor until 1852, and elected thereafter. Under the new state constitution of 1870, the legislative powers of the County Court were transferred to a Board of Supervisors. Elected from four magisterial districts (Madison, Taylor, Barbour, and Gordon), the first Board of Supervisors took office on September 5, 1870. A fifth district (Spotswood) was created in 1963, and the names of election districts were changed to numbers in 1991.
This history of the members and Chairmen of the Board was compiled by R. Mark Johnson from the official minutes of the Board located in the Orange County Circuit Court Clerk's Office. As of 2023, Johnson also authored each of the individual biographies.
The following individuals have served as members of the Orange County Board of Supervisors since 1870. The listed year indicates the year when the person first took office. An asterisk denotes service as Chairman.
Click an image below to enlarge the image and read more about the supervisor.
NOTE: This project to compile photographs of each Board member is a work in progress. To share a photograph or provide information on the whereabouts of a photograph not currently shown, please contact Alyson Simpson, Chief Deputy Clerk to the Board, by email or at (540) 672-3313.